Olympic Summer Games

The Olympic Summer Games (French: Jeux olympiques d’été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Olympic Summer, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, Greece, and the most recent Games were held in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is responsible for organising the Games and for overseeing the host city’s preparations.^[1] The tradition of awarding medals began in 1904; in each Olympic event, gold medals are awarded for first place, silver medals for second place, and bronze medals for third place. The Winter Olympic Games were created out of the success of the Summer Olympic Games, which are regarded as the largest and most prestigious multi-sport international event in the world.

The Olympic Summer Games have increased in scope from a 42-event competition programme in 1896 with fewer than 250 male competitors from 14 nations, to 339 events in 2021 with 11,420 competitors (almost half of whom were women) from 206 nations. The Games have been held in nineteen countries over five continents: four times in the United States.

London was the first city to host the Olympic Summer Games three times. As of 2022, Paris, Los Angeles, Athens and Tokyo have each hosted twice; Paris will host for the third time in 2024, followed by Los Angeles which will host the Games in 2028.^[2] Only five countries have participated in every Olympic Summer Games: Australia, France, Great Britain, Greece, and Switzerland. Australia, France and Great Britain have won at least a medal at every edition of the Games, with Great Britain as the only one to win gold each time.

Hosting – Olympic Summer Games

The United States hosted the Olympic Summer Games four times: the 1904 Games were held in St. Louis, Missouri; the 1932 and 1984 Games were both held in Los Angeles, California, and the 1996 Games were held in Atlanta, Georgia. The 2028 Games in Los Angeles will mark the fifth occasion on which the Summer Games have been hosted by the U.S.

In 2012, Great Britain hosted its third Olympic Summer Games in London, which became the first city ever to have hosted the Summer Olympic Games three times. The cities of Los Angeles, Paris, and Athens (excluding 1906) have each hosted two Summer Olympic Games. In 2024, France will host its third Olympic Summer Games in its capital, making Paris the second city ever to have hosted three Summer Olympics. In 2028, Los Angeles will in turn become the third city ever to have hosted the Games three times.

Olympic Summer Games

Australia, France, Germany, Greece and Japan all hosted the Olympic Summer Games twice (with France and Australia planned to host in 2024 and 2032, respectively, taking both countries to three each). Tokyo, Japan, hosted the 2020 Games and became the first city outside the predominantly English-speaking and European nations to have hosted the Summer Olympics twice, having already hosted the Games in 1964;^[3] it is also the largest city ever to have hosted, having grown considerably since 1964. The other countries to have hosted the Summer Olympics are Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, South Korea, Soviet Union, Spain, and Sweden, with each of these countries having hosted the Olympic Summer Games on one occasion.

Asia has hosted the Olympic Summer Games four times: in Tokyo (1964 and 2020), Seoul (1988), and Beijing (2008).

The 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, were the first Olympic Summer Games to be held in South America and the first that was held completely during the local “winter” season. The only two countries in the Southern Hemisphere to have hosted the Summer Olympics have been Australia (1956, 2000, and upcoming 2032) and Brazil (2016), with Africa having yet to host any Summer Olympics.

Stockholm, Sweden, has hosted events at two Olympic Summer Games, having been sole host of the 1912 Games, and hosting the equestrian events at the 1956 Summer Olympics (which they are credited as jointly hosting with Melbourne, Australia).^[4] Amsterdam, Netherlands, has also hosted events at two Olympic Summer Games, having been sole host of the 1928 Games and previously hosting two of the sailing races at the 1920 Olympic Summer Games.